Damn It Ed!
by Sagan Fox
Summary: What happens when Ed is injured during a abounty takedown?
1. Intro

"Damn it Ed!"

The thirteen year old cringed at the sound of Spike's voice resonating down the halls of the ship.  _Uh-oh, she thought, _Spike found out I hid his cigarettes again.  Can't the guy take a hint?__

He charged into the living area and squared off in front of Ed, who was standing on the hard yellow couch.

"Where are my cigarettes?" he demanded, and bent down so his face was level to hers.  

She stuck her tongue out at him and answered "Ed won't tell!"

Spike's eye twitched out of frustration and the increasing craving for nicotine.  

"Ed, you have until the count of three to place my cigarettes into my hand."

"Edward will not give Spike-person his icky cigarettes!  They're bad for him!"

"One..."

Ed began repeating the phrase "Ed won't tell!" over and over again at varying pitch and volume.

"Two..."

Her litany continued unabated.

"Three!"  Spike lunged to grab Ed, but she slipper away and jumped onto a pipe on the ceiling, scuttling away into an air duct, still shouting her mantra.  In the attempt to grab her Spike lunged too far forward, and crashed face-first into the floor.  There he spotted his pack of cigarettes under the couch, and quickly retrieved them.  

"Stupid kid," he muttered as he lit a bent cigarette.  "I hate kids."

When she was thoroughly convinced that she was out of Spike's range, Ed dropped down out of the air duct and proceeded into the kitchen, where Faye sat with her head on the counter.  She opened a bloodshot eye and followed Ed across the room with it before groaning and turning away.  

_Faye looks sick, thought Ed.  _What was the old Earth remedy...oh yeah!  Chicken soup!  I'll make some chicken soup for Faye so she'll feel better.__

The clanging of pots and cabinet doors grated against Faye's raw nerves, and drew the attention of Jet.  He entered to witness his kitchen being torn apart.

"Ed!  What the hell are you doing?!"

"Making Faye-Faye some soup!" called Ed from deep inside a cabinet.  "She's sicky-wicky!"

Jet glanced over at Faye.  She had her hands clamped over her head and was moaning "Make her stop Jet..."

Ed popped out of the cabinet, soup pot in hand and walked past Jet.  He stopped her mid-stride and took the pot from her.

"Why don't' you let me do that, Ed.  How about you go look for new bounties?"

"Roger-dodger Jet,-person!"  She set off to her laptop with her hands out to her sides like an airplane, with sound effects to match.  

Jet turned to face his destroyed kitchen and ran his hand over his bald scalp.  Faye slumped off of the stool and onto her feet, mumbling "...should've left that kid on Earth..." before retiring to her room.

A few hours later a shrill cry of "Got one!" rang down the corridors of the ship.  

"Jet-person!  I found a bounty!"

_That's nice, Ed, thought Jet.  _Damn kid's just a bother.__

"It's worth 25 million woooooooooolongs!"

**This caught the attention of the crew, and in seconds all three clustered around her computer screen.**

"Derek Krow, wanted for embezzling 200 million woolongs from the highest earning software company in the solar system.  Last seen on Mars."  A picture of a man with neatly combed blonde hair in a tailored suit flashed on the screen.

"How convenient," smirked Spike, "he's leaving for Venus in 6 hours from Tharsis Spaceport.  Let's go."

The three filed out of Ed's room, heatedly discussing the best way to go about bringing down the bounty head.  Ed watched them leave, holding her amber gaze at the door as their voices faded down the halls.  With a sigh, she snapped on her green goggles and set back to work on her Tomato.  


	2. Homecoming

Wow, I update so fast!  I forgot to say that I don't own Cowboy Bebop.  It SHOULD be pretty obvious...if I did own it Julia would have died a much more gruesome death...I never really did like her.  Anywho...

(Spike bursts into the room)

Spike:  Hey you!  Author girl!  Quit toying with our lives!  We have enough of that done in our canon episodes!

SF:  Silence monkey!  You're my putty now, to be molded to whatever I will!  (evil glare)

Spike:  Bite me, bitch!

SF:  Invitations and flattery will get you nowhere.  Now get back in my brain where you belong!

Spike:  No way in hell!  There are free-roaming derivatives in there!  And I think the X-Files trivia section of that god-awful place tried to eat me!

SF:  Be a good bishie and get back in my brain!  Don't make me give you to Discordia...

Spike: (cowers in fear) I'll be good.  (curls into fetal position) Please don't let her hurt me....

SF: Damn straight.  That's my job....later...muahahahahahaha (coughcough) ha...

Spike:  (whimpers and leaves)

Where was I?  

Oh yeah....Read, Enjoy, Review...especially that enjoy part...you should know what will happen if I'm flamed, so be forewarned again.  Here we go!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Edward awoke to the sound of the ships docking into the Bebop's deck.  _They're baaaaaack, she thought.  _I hope they got the bounty. _ She jumped up into the ventilation system and scurried off to the living room to check up on the crew._

            Meanwhile, Jet shoved a very unhappy Derek Krow into the room and forced him into a sitting position on a hard yellow chair.  He kept his gun trained on the man as he sat down across from him.  

            "Now, Mr. Krow, we're just going to wait patiently for the ISSP to come take you away.  Consider it an all expenses paid 20 year stay at a highly exclusive resort" he smirked.

            Faye and Spike followed close behind, both pulling cigarettes out of their respective packs.  Spike inhaled the smoke deeply and leaned back against a wall. 

            "You just made me a very happy man, Mr. Krow.  Your former business associates must want you very badly to cough up 25 million."

            One third of which is all mine," Faye remarked as she herself took a drag from her lit cigarette as she leaned against the door.

            "One third?  What exactly did you do to warrant such a cut?  Just stood there, that's what!" yelled Spike.  

            "Hey!  You guys would never have been able to bring him down, which, may I add, I could have done myself, if I hadn't distracted him and held him there so long!  Who do you think it was that tailed him while you two idiots searched the wrong damn terminal?!" 

Their bickering grew louder and louder as Jet grew more distracted by their fighting.  Using this distraction, Krow took a concealed pin from his back pocket and began to pick the handcuffs.  

Unable to take it anymore, Jet turned away from Krow and yelled "Stop acting like children, both of you!"  His attention was jerked back when Krow wrested the gun away from him, and turned it back on Jet.

"I won't be taken to prison, especially not by the hands of you dumbasses!" he shouted, and bolted for the door.  Spike lunged and tackled him from behind. As they fell, Krow let a shot off into the air, puncturing an air duct.  Spike subdued the man with a hard punch to the face, proceeded to bind his hands and feet together, and shoved him into a corner.  

"Bastard!" he exclaimed.  "Look at this; he got blood on my favorite suit!"

Jet opened his mouth to respond, but was silenced by a low whimpering, crying sound coming from above.  The three looked around the room for the source of the sound.  Jet looked up at the duct, and his eyes widened with fearful trepidation.  He slowly stepped up on the table and began to remove the grate on the duct.  

"What is it, Jet?" asked Faye.

Jet stuck his head up into the duct and let out a light gasp.

"What, Jet?"

"Oh god...Ed!"  

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Muahahahahahahaha!  Cliffhanger!  Muahahahahahaha!  Pleeeeeease review!


	3. Reaction

A/N:  Woohoo!  Sagan Fox finally updates!  I hope you all enjoyed my cliffhanger hehehe.  Now, before we get the show on the road, Sagan Fox has a little surprise for you.  (Pulls Spike out from behind a curtain)  Spikey-dearest is going to do the disclaimer!

Spike:  No I'm not.  (Walks offstage)

Sagan Fox:  Oh yes you are!  (Clicks the button on the retractable dog leash and snaps him back to her side) Now be a good bishie and say the disclaimer!

Spike:  (glares and mumbles) Sagan Fox...show...not hers....

Sagan Fox:  Pardon me?  I couldn't quite hear you.

Spike:  (glares more) Sagan Fox does NOT own the show!  Happy now?  (Lights cigarette)

Sagan Fox:  ^_^ Very.  (Puts out Spike's cigarette) Stop that.  It's bad for you.

Spike:  Bitch.

Sagan Fox:  You know you love me.  

Spike:  (walks offstage mumbling something about contracts)

Anywho, read, enjoy, review!  Especially that enjoy part!  All flames will be met with a pissed off author (namely, me) hurtling down the street clad only in fire wielding a katana....and it ain't a pretty sight, folks...  Many thanks to Discordia, my loyal beta-reader, and my bishie-obsessed beta-reader-in-training whom I shall from now on call EarFetishGirl!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            "Oh god...Ed!"

            In the dim light streaming in from the bullet hole in the duct, Jet saw Edward curled into a semi-fetal position clutching her side.  Blood oozed between her fingers and stained her white shirt a deep crimson.  Jet was shocked by the fact that she wasn't crying, just whimpering and grimacing in pain.  He shot out his arm and grabbed her foot to drag her to him, eliciting stifled screams of pain.  He gingerly lowered her down out of the duct.  Now he could see that the bullet had punctured the left side of her abdomen, and she was bleeding profusely.  

            Jet tore his eyes from her and barked "Don't just stand there, do get the med kit!" at his gaping comrades.  

            Faye and Spike both gasped when they saw her, exchanging weighted glances with each other and Jet before rushing off to get medical supplies.  Jet carefully laid Ed on the yellow couch.  She was breathing hard, irregular breaths now.  He took off his blue vest and balled it up, then pressed it against the wound to stop the bleeding.

            "Ed!  Ed, can you hear me?" he said, looking for a sign that she could understand him.  Her amber eyes shot open and she nodded, laying her head back on the couch to stare up.  _It hurts so much...How does Spike not cry out when he gets shot?  Please don't let them be too mad at me...I couldn't stop it...I think I'm in big trouble._  She closed her eyes and winced from the new pain of pressure on the wound.

            "Ed, you're going to be ok.  Don't worry; we're going to get you to a hospital."  He smiled to reassure her, but really he was being torn apart.  _Damn it!  I never should have taken my eyes off of that man!  If I hadn't let myself get distracted this wouldn't have happened.  God, I'm sorry Ed.  Hold on kiddo._

            Right then Spike and Faye returned.  Both of them looked just as scared and concerned as he did.  Faye kneeled down next to him with the med kit.  Spike set down the blanket next to Jet and backed out of the way.

            "What happened, Jet?"

            "Bullet caught her in the side.  Bleeding pretty bad.  We have to get her to a hospital," he replied, and began to wrap the wound tightly.  Faye instinctively took Ed's hand in hers and squeezed it to comfort her.  To her surprise, Ed squeezed back.  After finishing his makeshift bandage, he wrapped her in the blanket to prevent her from going into shock.  

            Spike leaned down to see how bad it was.  He found himself becoming angrier and angrier the more he saw how pale her usually tan skin had become, but he couldn't tell if the anger was directed at the man who had shot her or at himself.  He calmly strode toward the still-bound Derek Krow, and began kicking him repeatedly in the stomach.  With a feral growl, he pulled the man up by his collar and snarled "If she dies, God help me so will you..." before slamming him into the wall.  The man crumpled unconscious to the floor.  

            Faye called out "Stop it, Spike!  What good will that do her now?"  She did, however, have to admit to herself that had she been in the same place, she would have done the same thing.  

            Jet gathered Ed into his arms and carried her to the docking bay.  He thanked Ed's lucky stars that they weren't out in space, but docked in their usual spot on Mars.  Faye trailed at his heels awaiting instruction.  

            Ed's world was now one of passing blurred colors and shapes, muted sounds, the hovering faces of her shipmates, and, most of all, pain.  She felt herself being pulled in by the excruciating, piercing pain that seemed to spread to every cell of her being, and as she was pulled the world became darker.

            _So peaceful, she thought, __so sleepy.  _

She was jarred awake by a barking voice.  "Edward, you have to stay awake, girl!"

Another lighter voice chimed in.  "Jet, what's going on?  Ed, don't you dare close your eyes!"

_Jet.  Faye.  I'm scared.  She let her head drop back a little, and the world once again became one of passing color.  _

Jet stopped next to Faye's ship and turned to her, joined by Spike a moment later.

"I'll take her in my ship.  Faye, you follow me.  Spike, you wait here with our friend and please don't do anything rash."

Spike glared and opened his mouth to protest, but his eyes said what his mouth could not.

"Just do it, Spike. I'll keep you posted."

He grudgingly nodded in compliance, and the three separated again.  Before climbing into her ship, Faye cast one last glance at Ed as Jet gently loaded her into his ship.  _Please don't die, Ed.  You can't leave me as the only female on this ship.  _She sat down and activated the controls.

In Jets ship space was cramped, but that was the least of his concerns.  He laid her across his lap and activated the controls of the Hammerhead.  The ship took off like a shot, closely followed by the Redtail.  

A few minutes later, Faye's anxious voice crackled over the radio.  "How is she, Jet?"

"She's holding."  He quickly scanned her and found her staring intently at him. In her eyes he saw a sobriety she had never shown before.

"Jet," she laboriously whispered, "am I going to die?"  Her voice was as serious and as adult as any her had heard.  He noted that she had not referred to herself in the usual third-person manner, and, to be honest, this alarmed him.  He stared at her dumbfounded before answering.

"No, kiddo, you're going to be fine.  Try not to talk.  We'll be at the hospital soon."

She could not longer support her head on her own, and let it drop back.  Unconsciousness claimed her and her body went limp.  Jet accelerated even more, nearly crashing though a wall as he landed outside the emergency wing of the hospital.  He threw open the hatch and lifted Ed's limp body out.  He broke into what would have to pass for a run into the emergency room, soon followed by Faye.

"This girl's been shot!" He yelled at the startled staff, and in second he was laying Ed down onto a stretcher.  As they wheeled her into the operating room he told the doctors roughly what had happened to her, with Faye following closely.   A nurse shoved a clipboard with paperwork at Faye and halted them from following them any further. 

"Doctors only from this point on.  You'll have to go back to the waiting room."  She disappeared behind the swinging double doors, leaving Jet and Faye standing alone staring at the doors.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Does this count as a cliffhanger too?  If so, MUAHAHAHAHA (coughcoughcough) HA!  Once again, pleeeeeeeeeaze review.  


	4. Painful Recovery

     AN:  Hidey hodey fanfic fans!  Yay!  Sagan Fox finally gets off her ass and updates!  Hope you all enjoyed the last cliffhanger...muahahahahaha (coughcoughcough) ha!  This chapter's a bit (translation: a helluvalot) longer than the other.  Once again, I must thank my beta readers and storyboard reviewers Discordia and EarFetishGirl, as well as my little otaku/beta reader in training GutterAngel (note to GutterAngel—if you want a different nickname, tell me!).  We'll convert you soon, hon!  Once again, read, enjoy, review!  Especially that enjoy part.  Flame me and you'll be met with a berserking author clad only in fire wielding a katana.  And that aint a pretty sight, folks.  (Insert shameless plug for the fiction of Discordia, the Goddess of Irony here) Just read it.  It's good, and I beta-read it myself!  

(Wave of cigarette smoke wafts by)  

Sagan Fox:  What the...?

(Spike walks in)

Spike:  I found where you hid my smokes.

Sagan Fox:  (glomps Spike) Dammit!  (Rips cigarette out of his mouth and slaps a nicotine patch on his forehead)  I told you no smoking in Sagan Fox's brain!  Now get back in the closet until I need you!

Spike:  Listen, bitch, you can't just keep me locked up in here!  You don't own me!  You don't own the show!

Sagan Fox:  Silence monkey!  (Shoves him back in her Bishie Closet)  Ahem...where was I?  Oh yeah...on with the show!  ^_^

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They had been sitting in the waiting room of the hospital for four hours.  Four long hours since Ed was wheeled away from them into an unknown future.  About half an hour after Faye and Jet arrived, Spike made his loud entrance into the waiting room, harassing the nurses about Ed's whereabouts and condition.  After they threatened to have him removed, he quieted down and sat down across from Jet to brood.  

      Jet lazily glanced at the two of them, both silent since their arrival, before running a cold metal hand over his balding head.  He watched as Faye tried for the sixth time to discreetly light a cigarette, and for the sixth time the attending nurse told her to either put it out or leave.  She slumped back in her chair and began to chew the fingernail she had been gnawing on for the past hour.  Jet wondered if it was the nicotine cravings or her attempt to appear impassive about the situation.  

      _I hate hospitals_, he thought as he took in the pastel-toned room and faded art prints on the walls.  _They try so hard to make these godforsaken places look cheery, but all that does is remind you that you're supposed to be depressed.  _

_      This wasn't supposed to happen_, thought Jet.  _Ed isn't supposed to get hurt.  She's just supposed to sit in front of her computer, find the bounties, babble her nonsense, and run off to play with Ein.  She's not supposed to be like me, or Spike, or Faye, and risk her life.  She's just supposed to be a little girl._

_      Little girl._

_      Hmm.  I've never thought of her like that before.  She may be odd, but she's always been responsible for someone her age, and almost as useful as Spike or Faye.  I guess I just saw her as another partner.  No, not another partner.  A daughter?  Maybe.  _

_      Either way, she doesn't deserve this.  No 13 year old does.  Hell, most 36 year olds don't.  Her eyes...she was so scared.  I've never seen her in true fear of anything before.  She may be a genius, she may be reliable for her age, but she is still a child at heart.   Ed cannot be hurt again.  I don't want the death of someone so innocent, a child, on my hands.  I won't stand for it.  _

Just then a young woman came out of the hall into which Ed was taken.  She glanced at the paperwork on her clipboard, then turned and addressed the party.  "Are you the guardians of Edward Wong Hau Pepelu Tivrusky the Fourth?"

All three rose and clustered around her.  Faye went at the woman first.  

"Where's Ed?  Is she alright?  Can we see her?"

The woman backed away.  Sensing her slight intimidation, Jet crossed in front of Faye and calmly held out his hand. 

"Yes, I'm Jet Black; these are my associates Faye Valentine and Spike Spiegel."

She stepped forward again and shook his hand.

"I'm Dr. Hall, I performed Ed's surgery. She's going to be fine."

Unbeknownst to even themselves, all three breathed deep sighs of relief.  The doctor continued explaining Ed's condition.  

"The bullet went clean through, and by some miracle the only significant damage was a small nick on her right kidney.  A centimeter or so lower and it would have had to be removed.  It didn't hit any major blood vessels or nerves, and her bleeding wasn't very severe.  We'd like to keep her here for a few days for observation, make sure there's no infection."

"Thank you so much, Doctor," he said as a relieved smile crept onto his face.  

Spike spoke up from behind Jet.  "Can we see her?"  He was trying not to betray the concern in his voice.

Dr. Hall smiled and nodded.  "Yes, of course.  She hasn't come out of the anesthesia yet, but we expect her to be conscious in a few minutes.  Follow me."  She turned and led them down a long, harshly lit hall.  

Spike shoved his hands in his pockets and trailed a few feet behind the other two.  _One less death on my hands for a change.  This one would have been harder to bear than the others.  _

_Why do I even care?  It's not like she means anything to me.  What are the three things in the world I hate?  Animals, kids, and women with attitudes.  She's just another person to put up with on the ship.  A burden.  Albeit, a burden useful for finding bounties, but still, a burden.  Just another person to worry about._

_Damn.  I do care, don't I?  Now I remember why I hate kids...they make you care.  _

_Ed isn't like most kids, though.  It's not every schoolyard brat that can stop a bounty's ship in its tracks, or trace the untraceable.  She might even be pretty cool if it weren't for her strange, random behavior.  _

He flashed back to his encounters with Ed on the Bebop, and found himself with a specter of a smile.  _I suppose she does lighten the mood.  At the very least she's a distraction from Faye's bitching.  As annoying as she can be, I guess I do like the little teenage hacker.  _

He rounded a corner, trailing Faye, and was struck by what he saw.  __

_She's so helpless.  Like a child.  She really is still a kid, isn't she?  As un-kid like as she can be, she's still just a 13 year old girl.  She doesn't deserve this.  I shouldn't have picked that fight.  Ed, this is just between you and me, but I promise I won't let you get hurt again.  I won't have your death on my hands.  _

Edward was still asleep under the worn sheets and blankets of your average hospital bed in an average hospital room, decorated much like the waiting room.  The only sounds were the beeps and soft whirring of the monitors she had been hooked up to.  While her skin had regained some of its former color, she was still somewhat pale.  

Dr. Hall walked over in front of Ed's monitors and checked them, quickly scribbling information onto her papers.  She quickly looked Ed over before moving to the door.  

"I'll be back to check on her later," she said with a small smile, and left.  

Faye leaned against the wall near a window and crossed her arms over her chest.  She stared at Ed and thought, _Lucky girl.  Not everyone would take a bullet there and have almost no damage whatsoever.  Maybe this will teach her not to crawl around in those pipes anymore.  Maybe from now on she'll stay the hell out of the way.  _

_She'd better not go and die on me.  I'd hate to be the only female on that ship again.  Need another woman to balance out all that testosterone.  Men are idiots.  If Spike hadn't picked that fight and distracted Jet, that guy wouldn't have tried to run and shot Ed!  Of course...I could have avoided the fight.  _

_She's so pale.  I wonder how close she came to dying.  Too close.  Ein would be devastated if she didn't come back.  Even Spike, big jerk that he is, might feel something.  I...I'd miss her.  Who'd paint my toenails then?  Imagine that.  Faye Valentine just felt something.  Now I know why Spike hates kids..._

_She really is a very small person.  Even for a kid.  Despite her eccentricity, she's probably more mature than most 13-year olds.  But it's a childish maturity.  Thanks for not dying, Ed.  I'd hate to be hindered by any guilt over having been able to stop this.  You're not supposed to get hurt.  I put myself in danger, I get used to it.  You're just supposed to be you.  _

_Damn, I need a cigarette._

The rustling of Ed's blankets distracted her from her thoughts.  The three clustered around her as she slowly but surely returned to consciousness.  At first everything was blindingly bright, but soon her eyes adjusted and began to focus on nearby objects.  The first recognizable objects that passed into her line of sight were her comrades, Spike, Faye, and Jet.

_Too bright!  Spike.  Faye.  Jet, _she thought, her mind still jumbled and fuzzy.  _Warm.  Not on Bebop.  Itchy.  Hospital?  Head hurt.  Body hurt more.  They're worried about me, even Spike.  Not mad?  Focus, eyes, focus.  Speak.  Come on lips, move, must tell them I'm ok.  Ugh, mouth dry.  _

She yawned and tried to stretch her arms, but found herself almost immobile from the painkiller cocktail she had been given.  She concentrated more on forcing a weak smile on her face.  

"Greetings, Earthlings." she said emphatically, trying to regain some of her hyperactive energy.  She sighed in relief as the almost stricken looks on their faces faded, and Jet cracked a faint smile.  Spike drifted away with his trademark smirk to lean against a wall, and Faye just crossed her arms over her chest.

"Hey there, Ed," said Jet, "how you feeling?"

"Hurts, but Edward will be ok.  Edward is a tough Cowgirl like Faye-Faye and Spike-person and Jet-person."

Even Faye had to crack a smile.  "Yeah, they are tough Cowgirls aren't they?"

Jet glowered at her.  Ed just laughed.  "Funny Faye-Faye!"  She paused, "did you turn in the dirty scoundrel?"

Spike spoke up from across the room.  "Yeah, we turned him in."

"You sure you're ok, kid?" asked Faye.  

_Something's wrong_, thought Ed._  Something's different.  Why are they looking at me like that?  "Roger dodger Faye-Faye!  Ed's just gonna take a little nap..." said Ed before rolling over and closing her eyes.  _Maybe if I go to sleep everything will be back the way it was before.  I don't want them to look at me like I'm helpless.  I won't have them calling me a burden, because they're all I have.  __

She closed her eyes and listened for any movement, hoping that they would leave now and come back as if nothing had happened.  

Jet watched her for a few moments, and once he was convinced she was asleep he stepped back from the bed.  Ed could feel him staring contemplatively at her.  He spoke up in the silence to Jet and Faye.

"We need to talk."

"About what?" asked Spike, pushing himself up from the wall.  They congregated in a corner of the room and spoke in hushed tones.  

"What's this about, Jet?  If it's about the hospital bill, the bounty should more than cover it."

"Is money really all you think about Faye?" shot Spike dismissively.  

Faye reared to strike back, but was interrupted by Jet.  "Not now, you two.  We need to decide if Ed is going to stay on the Bebop or not."

Unbeknownst to any of them, Edward was not asleep.  She strained her ears to catch every word of their conversation.  _They want me to leave?_

"What's to discuss?  We don't have anywhere to put her, she has nowhere to go.  It wasn't her fault she was shot, and she didn't screw up the bounty, so why make an issue out of it?"

"Why are you on her side all of a sudden, Faye?  You complain about her more than anyone," interjected Spike.

"I know, but still...it doesn't seem very fair to throw a thirteen year old out on her ass," she replied.  

"Why are we talking about this anyway, Jet?  We let you come back when you get hurt," asked Spike.

"It's not about that.  It isn't healthy for a kid to be in an environment where things like this can happen.  Do you really want her to end up like us?  She needs to be somewhere safer, with a normal family and a normal life.  What if she has a family out there somewhere looking for her?"

"When she forced her way onboard she was wandering alone in the desert.  I don't think she has a family.  They would have gone looking for her." said Spike.

"People on Earth go missing or dead all the time with all the meteor collisions.  Maybe they all died." 

_Died?_ Thought Ed.  _Did my family die?  I can't even remember.  I had a father...but he left me.  Forgot I even existed.  After that, just a string of orphanages and shelters.  Until I came to the Bebop, that is.  _

Faye crossed her arms over her chest.  "So what do we do?  Just say 'sorry kid, but we don't want you to die, so you have to go back to an orphanage now?'"

"No, not exactly.  I just don't think its right for her to be someplace where she can get hurt, even killed!  It's called 'child endangerment', Faye.  I don't want her to die because of what we do."

Spike stepped forward.  "Hey, she made her choice.  She wanted to be here.  I don't know why she'd want to stay in a rat hole of a ship with people like us, but still she chose."

"When you were thirteen would you have given up what you thought was a carefree cowboy life?"

"When I was thirteen I was being groomed as a low level syndicate operative."

Jet glared at him.  Faye stepped between the two and looked from one to another.  "Have either of you even considered what Ed wants?"

They were silent.  Jet sighed heavily and ran a hand over his scalp.  Spike mumbled "I'm going to get some coffee", and left, shutting the door behind him.  Suddenly exhausted, Faye slumped down into an uncomfortable chair.  

Ed shut her eyes tight to hold back forming tears.  _So, they're pushing me away.  I'm just a bother, no one cares, and no one wants me around.  All they're worried about is getting in trouble if I die.  They're going to leave me alone again.  Just like my father.  Abandoned, again.  No one wants me.  _

_Fine.  If they don't want me around, then I won't be around.  I'll leave them before they can leave me.  As soon as I'm healed, I'll gather my things and leave.  It's what Faye would do.  Somewhere there has to be a place for me; somewhere I can go and be accepted.  _

She felt herself being pulled into what would be an uneasy sleep if not for the painkillers and sedatives.  _I'll leave.  They won't miss me.  They won't come looking for me.  _

_They won't even notice._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

End chapter!  Now, did you all REALLY think I'd kill Ed?  Silly readers!  No, I don't work like that.  Not in this fic anyway.  Mental and emotional abuse is much more interesting than any physical wound!  Pleeeease review!  And please write something besides "This is cool, update soon" I love the compliment, but I'd really appreciate any tips you all have to offer!


	5. On the Road Again

            AN:  Huzzah!  Sagan Fox finally updates!  I sold my soul to the local Renaissance Festival back in January, so I've been a bit busy with that over the past 6 weeks, so lay off!  

(Sagan Fox mercilessly beats her Festival character personality into a little box and throws it out of her brain)  

That felt good.  Anywho, I don't own Cowboy Bebop.  If I did Spike would not be allowed to wear a shirt.  Ever.  (Evil grin)

Spike:  What now?  What are you going to do to me?

      Sagan:  Nothing.  Never mind.  Just go stand over there and look sexalicious.

      Spike:  (raises eyebrow, then walks away in fear and confusion)

      Like I was saying, the show isn't mine and never has been.  So don't sue me.  You won't get much more than a lot of X-Files and anime stuff.  As I've said before, all who flame will be met with an author clad only in fire wielding a katana.  And that isn't a pretty sight folks.  Thankies to all my reviewers!  I love you all; you boost my confidence so much!

      (Insert shameless plug for the fanfiction of Discordia, the Goddess of Irony here)

      Just read it, it's good!  I beta-read it myself!

      Anyway, on with the show!

~~~~~~~~~~~

Doctor Hall said that Ed made an amazing recovery.  Only five days after she locked eyes with the Reaper, she was ready to go back to the Bebop.  The only physical reminder she would have of this would be a smooth surgical scar just light enough to be seen.  

      She bounded into the living room from the docking bay, just like she always did.  Ein began to bark happily at her, and she picked him up in a big bear hug.  

      "Was Ein worried about Edward?  Well, now everything is okiedokie because Edward is back!"

      Jet had to smile, if only just a little.  She seemed completely unaffected, completely back to normal.  _Kid bounces back almost as fast as Spike, he thought, and ambled off to start dinner._

      Faye flopped down onto the old yellow couch and flipped on the TV.  As she mindlessly flipped through the channels, she watched Ed cavort with Ein out of the corner of her eye.  

      _Something's different, _she thought, _she doesn't seem the same as before.  She looks, I don't know, sad.  Like she's just doing this as a front.  _As Ed began laughing wildly and mimicking Ein's stubby gait, Faye shook the thought from her mind.  _It's just my imagination, she dismissively told herself, and settled on a soap opera.  _

      Ed ran out of the room with Ein trailing at her heels into the main hallway.  She slowed down as soon as she was out of sight, and hung her head.  Ein stopped and looked at her, then let out a concerned whine before chasing after her again.  

      _I wonder when it's going to come_, she thought, _when are they going to do it?  I can't believe I let myself get so attached.  I loved father, and he left me.  I should have learned my lesson after that.  _

_      I thought I might belong here when I forced my way onto the Bebop.  I researched Jet, Faye, Spike, even Ein.  They didn't have a place to belong either.  Maybe we belonged together._

She rounded a corner into her room and spread out the large piece of cloth she used to carry her things in.  _Sometimes Jet seemed like a father to me.  Maybe Faye was like a big sister.  She would let me paint her toenails.  Sisters do that, right?  And Spike...Spike liked me sometimes, right?  I hid his cigarettes and he yelled at me a lot, but I was only trying to help him.  Smoking is bad!_

      She piled in what little clothing she had, her tools, and anything else she could think to bring and tied it tightly.  _I'll leave tonight after they've all fallen asleep.  If they don't want me here, I'll leave.  As much as it hurts, I won't stay if I'm just annoying.  _

Ed unplugged her Tomato and wrapped the cords around it, then hugged it to her chest seeking comforting warmth it did not contain.  _I'll always be alone.  Every time I get close to someone I get left behind in the dust.  No one wants to know me.  Maybe I should drop the old, reliable safety measure, the goofy exterior, and let people see the real me._

Searching under her thin mattress, she pulled out a faded newspaper clipping.  With tears in her eyes, she smoothed its wrinkled edges.  It was a photograph from a Mars newspaper.  A reporter had snapped a picture of her, Jet, Faye, and Spike for a story about the arrest of the leader of a smuggling ring.  In it, all four crewmates were smiling at the large bounty they had successfully brought down, a rarity for these four wayward souls.  Ed wiped her eyes and stuck the clipping in her shirt.

      _But who would want the real me?  Father didn't.  _

She laid down on what she would for the last time consider her bed.  Pulling the sheets over herself, she curled into a fetal position, sending dull pain from her fresh scar through her abdomen.  _If it weren't for that Krow man, maybe I wouldn't have been hurt.  Maybe I could stay.  Some souvenir._

      She closed her tear-filled eyes, and after a while slipped into a fitful sleep.  She dreamed of being completely and desperately alone in a cold, dark room, crying out for someone, anyone to show her where she belonged.  When she awoke it was dark, and the chill of the air conditioned ship at night seeped through the blankets.  Tears from her dream stained her tan cheeks.  She rose and gathered her things, then stepped into the hall.  As she passed the door to Faye's room, she stopped and stared at it.  Ed carefully opened the door and peeked through at the lightly snoring woman sprawled across the mattress.  

      "Bye Faye-Faye.  Take care of Spike,"_ she whispered, and moved on to Jet's room.  He rolled over and muttered something about bonsai clippings and beef, then started to snore._

      "Bye-bye Jet.  Take care of Faye-Faye."

When she came to the last door she paused before opening it.  She slowly creaked open the door to see his sleeping form.  _Adios, Cowboy.  One less annoyance on this ship when you wake up.  _

The girl then broke into a run toward the docking bay where she kept her red scooter.  She took it from its designated corner and checked to make sure it was running properly.  _Can't fly away with broken wings, can I?_  

      As an afterthought, she found a piece of paper and a pen and hastily scrawled a note to her now-former comrades.  It was simple and messy, but it said all she wanted them to know.

Going Away.  Bye-bye

She used the computer panel to set the bay doors to open with just enough space in just enough time to let her out, and then close in order to minimize the chance of one of them waking up and stopping her.

_Not like they would anyway._

She was about to execute the program when a familiar Welsh Corgi ran up to her and started barking, as if he knew what she was planning.  She smiled weakly and picked him up to give him one last hug.  "I'm sorry, Ein, but I have to go.  I can't stay here if everyone just wants me to leave.  Be a good dog, Ein."

_At least you will always be my friend._

She hit the execute key and hopped on her scooter.  She revved it up, and with one last look back she slipped out the docking bay doors, across the bridge connecting the ship to the land, and away from the Bebop.  

~~~~~~~~~~~

Fini!  For now, anyway.  Gotta love dramatic endings.  Please review!


	6. Discovery

A/N:  Wow!  Sagan Fox finally gets off her ass and updates!  I'm really sorry it's been so long, I've been having a lot of trouble with this chapter.  And it probably shows.  Fortunately I got two one-shots and the first chapter of a new Trigun fic out of it, so it's not a total loss.  Many thanks go to my beta-reader, Discordia the Goddess of Irony for reassuring me that this chapter DOESN'T suck, and for being my partner in crime.  Couldn't have the strength to actually post my writing without ya! ^_~  (Insert shameless plug for the fanfic of the abovementioned Discordia) Just read it!  It's good, and I beta-read it myself!  

(Spike walks in)

Spike: Are you done yet?  This is tiring.  Not even Wantanabe was as torturous as some of you fanfic writers.  And if I have to near-death experience one more time, I'm going to claim

Atheism and enjoy the peace and quiet.  (Lights a cigarette)

      (Sagan Fox snatches cigarette out of his mouth)

      Sagan Fox:  I told you not to smoke those around me.  This means another week on the leash.

      Spike:  Bitch.

      Sagan Fox:  Wanna push for two, because I certainly don't mind having you in captivity. (Evil grin)

      (Spike grumbles and walks away)

      Anywho, read, enjoy, and review.  Especially that enjoy part.  All flames will be met with a berserker author clad only in fire wielding a katana.  And that isn't a pretty sight, folks.  On with the show!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jet was the first to rise that morning.  After showering and dressing, he remembered that Dr. Hall had given them antibiotic cream for Ed's wound to prevent infection.  Though she rarely slept there, he went into her room to look for her.  He noticed that her few possessions were missing, but dismissed it, as she usually scattered her things about the ship.

      _Let's just hope she isn't building a bomb with them_, he thought as he entered the living area.  Still, she was nowhere to be found.  Jet was beginning to become annoyed.  The last thing he wanted was for her to act, well, like herself, and damage the healing wound.  

      _You'd think getting shot would teach the kid to stay out of the ducts.  I really don't feel like searching the ship for her right now.  _He poked his head into his bonsai room, and prayed they if she WAS in there, she hadn't hurt his trees.  Again he didn't find her, and scratched his head and went back into the hall, bumping into a groggy Spike.

      "Erg...hey, watch it." He rubbed his eyes as they adjusted to the light.

      "Have you seen Ed?  It's time for her to take her antibiotics." He asked, and followed Spike into the galley.  Spike switched on the coffeemaker and yawned, leaning against the counter.

      "Nope.  She up in the pipes again?"

      "I don't know, and I really don't want to go searching the whole ship for her."

      "I'm sure she's around here somewhere.  She always turns up."

      Jet began searching the cabinets of the galley, remembering Ed's affinity for secluded hiding places.  All he found were pots, pans, and more than a few dead cockroaches.  No longer annoyed, he was now becoming worried.  It wasn't like her not to be close to the kitchen in the morning.  The voracious girl was usually first in line for breakfast.  

      "Would you help me look for her?  I don't want her running around and tearing that wound back open."

      "Yeah, yeah..." mumbled Spike as he poured the coffee.  _It's too early for this.  Maybe we should start sedating her.  He wandered over to the docking bay and called out for her.  "Ed!  Where are you?  Get your butt out here!  It's too early to look for you, damn it!"  _

      That's when he noticed Ein lying next to a computer panel.  His footsteps woke the sleeping dog, who began to bark loudly and run erratic circles around Spike.  Ein bit down on the cloth of Spike's sweatpants and tugged him toward the panel.

      "Hey!  Stupid mutt, what the hell do you think you're doing?"  Ein released him and returned to running circles around Spike and barking.  Spike let out an angry sigh, when he recognized Ed's trademark messy handwriting on a slip of paper on the panel.   He picked it up and read it out loud.

      "Going away.  Bye bye.  Shit..."  He broke into a run to find Jet.  _Stupid girl!  Why the hell did she run off?  I swear, women don't operate on logic.  Damn kid won't last a week on Mars.  He found Jet looking for her on the bridge.  Jet looked up and saw Spike, and instantly knew something was wrong.  _

Spike handed him the note and said, "She's gone."

Jet scanned the slip of paper and growled.  "Damn!  What the hell is she thinking?"

At that moment Faye groggily stuck her head into the room.  "What's going on, why is everyone in here?"

"Ed's run off," said Jet, and tossed Faye the note.  Her eyes widened slightly, and she tossed it to the ground.  

"Are we going to go look for her?"

Spike leaned back against a wall and searched the pockets of his sweatpants for cigarettes.  "She chose to run off.  Maybe she doesn't want us to look for her.  Or maybe she just wants attention.  I wonder where she picked THAT trait up?" he said as he cast a sideways glance to Faye.  

"Shove it, Spike.  Besides she never sought attention like that before.  Maybe her wound was infected and she was delirious."

Jet calmly shook his head.  "I doubt it.  Anyway, we have to look for her.  She won't last very long on the streets of Mars."

"She lasted fine alone on Earth.  She'll be fine on Mars, too." said Spike in his usual calm, collected demeanor. 

"Mars is a lot different than Earth, Spike.  You should know more than anyone else.  There are different kinds of dangers, ones she probably has no experience with.  You know what Ed is like; she'll trust anyone who feeds her.  There are people who would prey on her, and I didn't just spend 350,000 woolongs saving her to let her go off and get killed!" Jet barked, and pounded his fist on the console.  

"We have to go get her.  You came after me when I left.  She deserves the same." said Faye, who then rushed off to change into her usual yellow vinyl outfit.  Jet could tell that both she AND Spike were scared for Ed.  And he had to admit that he was too.  She may be a genius, but she was still a child.  

Spike pushed himself off the wall and left as well, muttering, "The only reason you went after _her_ is because she stole our money."  His emotional detachment and loud annoyance only hid the fact that he wanted to find her and bring her back.  Despite his professed hatred for 'animals, kids, and women with attitudes', he had somehow come to accept living with all three, which surprised even him.  Spike Spiegel was not one for change unless he himself made the choice.  He quickly changed into his usual suit, and regrouped with Jet and Faye in what passed as the ship's living room.  

"So.  What are we going to do?" he said, and lit the first cigarette of the day.  The light menthol taste and nicotine entering his system soothed him, clearing his mind for the task ahead.

"We canvass the area on foot.  She couldn't have gone very far yet.  At most she's only been gone 10 hours.  We each take a different direction and work out from there."

"That's it, we just look on foot?  What if she hitched a ride on something?  She could be in a completely different city by now!" said Faye.  "Isn't there some other faster way to look?"  _She could be long gone; we could never know what happened to her.  She had better be ok, or I may have to wring her neck myself for making me worry like this.  Please be ok, kid.   _

"Alright then, I'll scout out the city's ports while _you_ two canvass the area.  Something tells me she hasn't left the city, but it won't hurt to check."  Jet stopped himself.  He couldn't believe that for once he actually agreed with Faye.  _Oh well, he thought,__ I suppose desperate times call for desperate measures.  I hope that kid hasn't gone and gotten hurt again.  _

"Sounds like a plan.  Let's go."  Spike threw away the spent cigarette butt as he lit another.  _Hmm, he thought, __usually I don't light up another one for another 45 minutes.  I knew that kid would be the death of me.  She's going to make me die of lung cancer at this rate.  She had better be ok.  _

All three left in silence, Jet to the Hammerhead and Spike and Faye to the small bridge connecting the ship to the dock.  All three prayed silently for Ed's safety and quick return beneath three stoic exteriors created by years of disappointment and years of witness to just how hard and dangerous the world could be.  Edward was not ready to face that world alone, and they all knew it.  Without realizing it, they came to need her innocence and light on the ship as much as her hacking skills.  Their un-erasable and unfortunate pasts had left all three cynical and hardened, and even if they didn't want to admit it, it did them a world of good to know that there were still those who were truly innocent and good in this chaotic and uncaring universe.  Even if it was only to let her go again into a less treacherous environment, they needed to get her back.  They _would_ find her, or they would die trying.  

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

      Fini!  Please review!!  I LIVE for reviews!

      (Vash walks in)

      Vash:  Saaaaagaaaan...you promised you'd come visit with ME next...

      Sagan Fox:  You know I love you Vash-san...I'll be right there.  Be a sweetie and draw my bath?


	7. Capture

A/N: Call the Pope, I think it's a miracle! Sagan Fox FINALLY updates this fiction! I truly am sorry, I have had such a crippling case of writer's block that it isn't even funny. Not even the stress of starting and attending college has helped, and usually stress unleashes the floodgates of fanfiction in my mind. Many thanks to my beta-reader, Discordia, the Goddess of Irony. Read her fanfic, it kicks ass, and I beta-read it myself!

  


(Spike walks by, smoking away)

  


Spike: It's about damned time you got back to me. Do you have any idea how disturbing it is to be trapped inside your brain for so long? You have a twisted mind, Sagan.

  


Sagan: (smiles) Thank you! (Glares) But what have I told you about smoking! Were you smoking in my brain? For Chrissakes, Spike, no wonder my muse refused to work! Alright, this is it. I really didn't want to do this, Spike...

  


Spike: Do what?

  


Sagan: This. (Snaps her fingers and uses her author powers to chibify Spike. Picks him up by the collar of his shirt and smiles evilly)

  


Chibi-Spike: What the hell did you do to me, bitch?!

  


Sagan: (Grins) Now, Spike, do you want the Happy Trail or the Fun Ball?

  


Chibi-Spike: Bite me, bitch!

  


Sagan: (Shakes her head) Invitations and flattery get you nowhere. Now, Happy Trail or Fun Ball!

  


Chibi-Spike: (Pouts) ...Fun Ball...

  


Sagan: (Grins) Looooove the Fun Ball! (Drops him in a hamster ball and kicks it across the room)

  


Where was I? Oh yeah. Read, enjoy, review! Especially that enjoy part. Any flames will be met with an author clad only in fire wielding a katana. And that isn't a pretty sight, folks.

  


On with the show!

  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  
  
  
  
  
  


"Hey, watch it, kid!"

A scruffy red-headed girl looked up from her position sprawled in the middle of the sidewalk at the irate man about to run her over with a fruit cart. She blinked and somersaulted out of the way to her makeshift backpack in the alley to let him pass. He muttered a few curses and went on his way, but not before she deftly picked a few apples off of his cart. 

  


Munching on her first meal in over twenty-four hours, Ed picked up her things and began to walk aimlessly, as she had been doing for the past three days. Living alone on Mars, she had deduced, was much different than living alone on Earth. On Earth, as strange as it sounded, every one was bad off, so everyone sort of looked out for each other. Orphanages like the one she had lived in for two years were common. On Mars, however, no one cared. It was easier for her to slip through the cracks, but all that lay in wait for her was a cold alley and a colder shoulder. 

  


Edward tossed the apple core into a bush and plopped down under a tree in a small park. The park had been her 'base of operations' since she had run away. It was secluded and far enough from the ports and metropolis of Tharsis to not be found, but close enough to scavenge in the busy city by day. She started up her computer and began what had become a daily ritual. She quickly hacked into the port registry database to scan for her former home. 

  


_Bebop hasn't taken off yet_, she thought as the name of the familiar ship appeared on the list. Ed didn't know why she checked up on the ship every day. Part of her wanted to make sure they weren't looking for her, and kept tabs on them in order to evade them. Part of her liked knowing that they were still around in case poor living conditions or simple fear of being alone in a strange place drove her back. And while she wouldn't admit it, part of her hoped they were looking for her, and that they wanted her back. The Bebop was one of the only real homes she could remember. 

  


She shut down the computer and leaned back against the tree, letting the sunlight warm her while she could. After a few moments she noticed something tickling one of her lanky legs, and sat back up to find a small green caterpillar making its way toward her knee. She nudged it onto her fingertip and slowly brought it closer to her face with curiosity. After letting it crawl over her hand for a few moments, she put it back down onto the grass and asked, "Do you know a place where Ed can live, Mr. Bug?" 

  


The small insect gave her no answers, just a small wave of it's many-legged abdomen as it walked away. Ed watched it disappear into the grass and leaned against the tree. _Nobody has a place for Ed,_ she thought. 

  


_The only place Ed liked was the Bebop. I can't remember my father, not really. All I remember is his smile, and the dust stinging my eyes as he drove away. The Bebop was the only place_ _I could go back_ _to. _

  


_But the Bebop wanted me to go away. I was a problem. Ed does not like to be a problem. Ed will not be a problem to anyone anymore. Ed will live alone with Tomato._

  


_ I wonder why Bebop hasn't left yet. Maybe they found another bounty here. Or maybe they're repairing the ship_._ Or maybe Faye ran off to the casinos again and they're waiting for her to come back. _

  


_Or maybe they're waiting for Ed to come back._

_Could they? Could they be worried about Ed? Could they be looking for me? Maybe they want me to come back. Maybe they even miss me._ _Maybe I heard them wrong, or overreacted. They could be looking for Ed right now! _

  


_Jet I think would want to look for Ed. Jet was always the nicest to me. He even let me water his bonsai. Jet let me help with chores, made sure I had food. Jet would wonder where Ed was and go find her to make sure she was somewhere safe. Jet was an even better father-person than my real father-person. Ed does not want Jet to worry. _

  


_Faye and Spike, Ed is not so sure about. They yelled at me a lot. But...when Jet told them that Ed was not safe and should leave, they both said Ed should stay. They never said they wanted me to stay because they liked me...but they at least didn't want me to be out on the street like this. Maybe I made a mistake by leaving. _

  


_I miss the Bebop. I miss sleeping inside, I miss eating real food, I miss being safe, and I miss Ein. Ed may have been yelled at a lot, but at least Ed was not alone and didn't have to be afraid every night. I want to go back to the Bebop. _

  


_But if I go back...what if they make Ed leave again. Or what if they don't let me back on because they're mad at me for leaving. Faye and Spike were almost not let back on. They were only allowed to stay because they can catch bounties. Ed can't catch anything. They will not want Edward back. I'm just a burden, a problem. Another mouth to feed, another person to worry about._

  


_ Oh, but I don't want them to worry about me...maybe...if I just go back long enough to find out why they haven't left Mars yet. They don't even have to see me, I can sneak in and sneak back out. Just long enough to find out why they're still here. _

  


_That's what I'll do,_ she thought, and piled her things back in her makeshift backpack. _I will sneak back into the Bebop to find out why they haven't left, and that will be all. They won't even see me, Ed will be very sneaky._

  


She got up and walked to the large bush in which she had concealed her red scooterand retrieved it, brushing leaves and debris from it. After dragging it to the sidewalk, she hopped on it and began to push it along with her feet. Her gas had run out only the day before. She picked up her pace as she thought about returning, if only for a moment, to the only real home she had ever known. Buzzing past merchants and pedestrians, she planned exactly how she would sneak onto the ship to avoid being caught. For a moment she considered leaving behind a note or a gift marking her presence, but decided against it. Despite the fact that she missed them all, even Spike, greatly, she concluded that it would complicate matters too much to let them know she was around again.

  


Edward remained lost in her thoughts until she could just barely see the Bebop. When she laid eyes on the recognizable hull of the old converted fishing ship, her heart leapt, and she began pushing herself faster. When she hit a downhill slope, she let herself go, and began to whizz past the people on the streets.

  


This is precisely why she didn't see the man in front of her until it was too late to do anything but try to swerve away. The next thing she knew, she was sprawled on the pavement with a pounding headache and large scrapes across her shoulder and knees. Carefully she sat up to look into the cold blue eyes of a man who was most definitely not happy with her.During the collision he had been thrown into a table covered in a variety of baked goods, and was now covered head-to-toe in icing. He pushed his limp, oily blonde hair out of his eyes to glare at Ed.

  


"You're gonna pay for this, brat!"

  


Ed pressed her hand against her forehead to brace against a wave of dizziness and felt a slight trickle of blood. She looked back up at the man, and was immediately struckwithrecognition.Their eyes met, and they simultaneously froze. A look of pure disgust came across his face, and he snarled at her.

  


"You...you're that kid from the Bebop!"

  


Ed stared up dumbfounded at him. Hadn't Spike given him to the ISSP? They got the bounty, so he had to have been put in prison. Why is he here now? Ed swallowed, and croaked, "You...you're that Krow person! The one Spike-person and Jet-person caught!"

  


He smiled a devious smile, and cooly replied,_ "_Yeah, kid, I am." He stood and dusted himself off as best he could, still smiling like a cat in front of an injured bird. "Your friends made life very bad for me, you know. They ruined everything."

  


The hair on the back of Edward's neck stood up as he spoke, and she could feel a chill pass over her entire body. "K-Krow-person is supposed to be in jail_..."_

  


_ "_I escaped. Did you honestly those lazy pricks at the ISSP could hold_me_?" He ran his fingers through his oily mop again. "You know, kid, I really hate to do this. But those Bebop bastards fucked it all up, and now they have to pay."

  


Ed's eyes widened, and her heart began to beat wildly in her chest. She started to scamper away, but he quickly caught her and dragged her into a nearby alley. He held her hands behind her back as she struggled, his frighteningly cool breath touching her small neck. 

  


"I'm gonna use you to make them pay, kid. Now be a good girl and quiet down. I really have nothing against you personally. You wouldn't want that to change, would you? I can hold a grudge," he said, yanking one of her arms strongly upward as she cried out, "for a _painfully_ long time."

  


_ "_No!"

  


"Your choice, kid," he snarled, and slammed her against a wall. She fell limp in his grasp, and helet her fall to the ground in a heap. Krow ran his fingers through his hair again and chuckled. He knew exactly what he should do. He knew what would hit those bounty hunters the hardest. Why go to them when he could make them come to him? He chuckled again, and ducked into a nearby warehouse.

  


"Sometimes I'm so ingenious I amaze myself" 

  
  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  


Fini! I promise, I will try and get my muse working again soon. Lazy bitch thinks she can just walk away mid-fiction....I'll show her. I'll show her good.

  


(Chibi-Spike runs past in the hamster ball)

  


Chibi-Spike: I think I'm starting to like this!

  


Sagan: Really? That's nice. (Kicks the hamster ball with all her might)

  


Chibi-Spike: (flies away in the hamster ball) You suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck....!

  
  
  
  



End file.
